New union contract raises pay floor, increases paid time off, grants holiday pay for the first time, funds training, and more, to help address care crisis facing seniors and people with disabilities across Minnesota

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Care workers and clients express frustration at anti-union group who attacked care workers, leading to a cut of half of the desperately needed funding, vow to continue fight to solve the state’s care crisis

Saint Paul — Home care workers and the state of Minnesota reached a new agreement for a union contract that covers approximately 27,000 Minnesota home care workers, with union members ratifying the contract Monday evening after a week of voting. The new contract will go into effect on July 1st. The two sides had to negotiate a new contract after elected officials cut funding in half for the previous tentative agreement in the final Health and Human Services (HHS) Omnibus budget bill that was passed by the State House and Senate and signed into law by Governor Dayton late last month.

The decrease in funding, which will slow the work being done to address the care crisis facing seniors and people with disabilities across Minnesota, came after repeated attacks on care workers and their clients from anti-union attorney Doug Seaton and the Center of the American Experiment. In legislative testimony, these groups – which have run a large-scale campaign since last summer to stop the union from negotiating a new agreement – advocated that legislators vote down raises and new benefits for home care workers. In expressing their anger at the reduction in funding that came as a result of these anti-union groups’ attacks, home care workers vowed to continue their fight next session, to restore funding to address the care crisis in Minnesota.

“So many good people all across the state worked hard pushing our elected officials to address the care crisis that is harming thousands of families like mine. Home care workers and clients like me negotiated in good faith earlier this year, but at the very end of the legislative session politicians decided to only fund half of what we had agreed to with the state, which is incredibly frustrating,” said Jim Carlisle, a home care client who counts on care for himself and his wife to be able to stay in their home. “We made some important steps forward in this new agreement, but the crisis in our state is well beyond the point where any half-measures will suffice.”

“This is, without exaggeration, a life or death situation for someone like me who relies on quality caregivers to get out of bed and do basic tasks like eating and leaving my house,” Carlisle continued. “I’m proud we won the gains we did, but we are still a long way from where we need to be. What we’ve proven over the last few months is that we won’t let any attacks or setbacks stop us. We will fight to ensure every person who needs care has access to quality caregivers.”

Despite the challenges of fighting frivolous lawsuits and attacks from deep-pocketed special interest groups, union members expressed pride in the tireless effort put forward by people across the state to bring attention to the care crisis.

“Progress simply would not have happened without our union. We are so happy that we have a collective voice in this critical fight,” said Yasmine Soud Reynolds, a home care worker from White Bear Lake. “By coming together as home care workers, family members and clients from across the state, we have made it clear to everyone that we will be invisible no more. Because we worked together and told our stories, we had a group of legislators from both political parties author the bills to ratify and fund the original agreement we reached with the state in January. When some union-busting lawyers tried to block that bipartisan support for the wage and benefit improvements we so desperately need, the only reason we were able to resist their efforts and still make progress through this new agreement is that we stayed united. They were able to get elected officials to reduce the funding, but they weren’t able to stop us from moving forward. We’ll be back next session to keep pushing for our state to address the care crisis, starting with restoring the funding lawmakers just cut.”

With the funding cut in half, the union’s bargaining team of workers, parents and clients had to go back to the bargaining table and reach a new agreement with the state, after engaging thousands of members in a difficult discussion of how to balance priorities. The new agreement was ratified after a week of voting that ended Monday evening.

Provisions of the new contract include:

A $1 an hour increase to the minimum wage for home care workers (the new floor is $12)

Time-and-a-half pay for workers who take care of their clients on five holidays, a benefit no home care workers in the state have had before

An increase in the amount of Paid Time Off home care workers earn

Training stipends for 5,000 workers who take voluntary trainings to build their skills in order to provide higher quality care

An online matching registry to help address the struggle clients face when trying to find quality care workers to bring into their homes

A 5% additional increase for those who work for the highest-need clients (defined as those who qualify for 12 or more hours per day of in-home care)

While proud of the gains, Delores Flynn, whose 46-year-old son Scott needs full time care after suffering a major brain hemorrhage, vowed that families will be back next session to demand that the funding lawmakers cut be restored

“We will continue to fight until every Minnesotan who needs care has access to the quality care they need to stay in their home. We expect politicians to do right by restoring the funding they cut,” said Flynn, who lives in Roseville. “There is a crisis happening across our state. If this crisis hasn’t touched you or someone you love yet, it will. When it does, you will realize that this isn’t an issue we can ignore. With the coming wave of baby boomers who will want quality care to stay in their homes, this crisis is only going to grow if it is not truly addressed. Care work should not be a political issue, but it is frustrating that money desperately needed by our families was caught up in political games. We cannot risk having people with disabilities and seniors go without the care they need due to the chronic shortage of workers. It is far more expensive to care for people in a facility than it is providing care for them in their homes. Elected officials from all parties should make restoring the home care funding they cut the very first bill they pass when they come back to St. Paul.”

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SEIU Healthcare Minnesota unites more than 35,000 healthcare and long-term care workers in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and home care throughout the state of Minnesota.

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Saint Paul — With news today that the Bureau of Mediation Services dismissed the decertification attempt by the anti-union group “MNPCA.org” for lacking sufficient support, Minneapolis home care worker and SEIU Healthcare Minnesota Executive Board member LaTanya Hughes shared her feelings about the latest attack on the union again falling short.

“The campaign to undermine the union we’ve worked so hard to build came up well short of the support they needed to trigger an election. This effort was never supported by a significant number of home care workers or the people with disabilities and seniors we serve. As the people actually affected, we all know that we need a powerful voice at the Capitol to address the home care crisis Minnesota is currently facing, and the only way we have that is by coming together,” said Hughes. “That voice, SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, worked tirelessly to reach a tentative agreement with the Department of Human Services to raise wages and other benefits for home care workers. It is unfortunate that there are people who disagree with increasing wages and benefits for growing workforce by trying to decertify the union and hamper efforts for our second contract.”

Hughes continued, “I was proud to be part of the bargaining team that reached a tentative agreement that will, if it’s now ratified by union members and the legislature, make major strides forward in addressing the care crisis — a severe shortage of quality care workers because of low pay and few benefits — by raising the pay floor from $11 to $13, providing new funding for training and stipends to reward home care workers to improve their skill sets, more paid time off, two paid holidays for the first time ever, additional wage increases for workers providing care to the clients with the highest level of complex care needs, and more. We still have a lot of work to do to fix the care crisis facing Minnesota families, but I’m incredibly proud we didn’t let any distractions stop us from getting to this point where we are so close to improving the lives of tens of thousands of families all across our state.”

In dismissing MNPCA’s petition, the Bureau of Mediation Services (BMS) announced that the group had not turned in enough signatures seeking a new vote to decertify the union. Even in the unlikely event that all the cards submitted by the anti-union campaign proved valid, they at best came up over 5,000 workers short of the “Showing of Interest.”

Shaquonica Johnson, a home care worker from West St. Paul and Vice President of SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, remembered the lengths home care workers had to go to get a chance to vote on their union, the same exact process that the anti-union forces just failed to achieve.

“I remember like it was yesterday the excitement I felt on the morning, back in July 2014, when we filed our petition with BMS to request a union election. We brought them boxes and boxes of cards – from over 10,000 home care workers, from every corner of the state, wanting to form our union. I’m so proud of the work we’ve done since then to make progress for home care workers and the people we serve. And after many months and hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on anti-union mailings, slick videos, opinion pieces in the newspaper, and lawsuit after lawsuit after lawsuit, these anti-union groups still haven’t gotten through to even a third of the number of workers they would need to convince in order to get a new election. That should tell them everything they need to know about whether it makes sense to keep up their relentless attacks on a struggling workforce that is made up almost entirely of women. We want a union, we know we need a union, and we’re never going to let a bunch of lawyers and special interest groups take our union away from us.”

The next step with the tentative agreement will be a vote on it by union members. If approved, it would then go to the Minnesota Legislature for ratification and then signed by the Governor to go into effect on July 1st.

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SEIU Healthcare Minnesota unites more than 35,000 healthcare and long-term care workers in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and home care throughout the state of Minnesota.

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Contract will go into effect on July 1st for 27,000 home care workers across the state, improving the lives of workers and the people they serve

St. Paul, MN – With the Governor’s signing of the Omnibus Health and Human Services bill today, leaders from SEIU Healthcare Minnesota celebrated the legislative passage of their historic first home care contract. The contract, the first new union contract with the state of Minnesota in decades, had bipartisan support in the Legislature, including stand-alone bill authors Sandy Pappas (SF1274), Rod Hamilton (HF2035), and Denny McNamara (HF1298). The contract will go into effect on July 1st and covers approximately 27,000 home care workers across the state. Key victories in the contract include workers receiving a paid time off benefit for the first time (five days of paid time off for full-time workers), raising the pay floor from $9 to $11 by 2016, a grievance and arbitration procedure to address wage theft, and a training fund to improve the quality of care they provide to people with disabilities and seniors. Workers championed the contract as a great step forward for both themselves and the people they serve.

Having paid time off is something the bargaining team fought for because it will help to decrease turnover and improve the health and safety of both worker and client. Christine Hale, a home care worker from Crosby, spoke about the importance of the paid time off portion of the contract for herself and her family:

“I’m so excited to get paid time off after working for all these years without it,” said Hale, a mother of three. “The last time I had a surgery I had to go back to work right away because I was the only provider for my family — and it was really hard.”

Another key part of the new contract is that workers will have a voice against wage theft, an issue that has caused countless workers to leave the field. Sadie Hawkins, a home care worker from White Bear Lake, is currently dealing with not being paid and spoke about how the Union contract will help workers in the future.

“The grievance process will give those of us who have gone through wage theft a clear way to get the pay we are due for the work we have done – without going to smalls claims or another unpredictable process,” said Hawkins. “I worked for Forest Lake home care and my agency failed to pay me for a month of my work, but I couldn’t stop working because my client needed support. Two months later and I’m still waiting on my money.”

It isn’t only the workers who see the benefits of improving the home care field. Nikki Villavicencio, a home care recipient, highlighted how this contract will be helpful for consumers who utilize home care services.

“This contract will mean a better life for workers, but also for families across the state like mine,” said Villavicencio, who lives in Maplewood with her husband and daughter. “My family will benefit from the increased stability that will come with a higher pay floor, paid time off, new training funds and the other benefits that this contract will provide the workers who care for us. Home care workers are crucial to making sure seniors and people with disabilities are able to stay in their homes, and I am glad this contract begins to recognize their value. This is an important step in our fight, so both workers and care recipients like my family can fully live the lives we choose.”

The contract appropriated $16.227 million over two years, and its economic impact will be double that because of Federal Medicaid matching, meaning a stronger industry for workers and for those receiving care. The contract raises the wage floor to $11 by 2016, something that will directly impact Minnesotans like home care worker Alberta McCurdy, a mother and grandmother from Minneapolis who has been a home care worker for many years. McCurdy stated that, “I currently make $9 an hour and this wage increase will help me pay my bills and pay my rent.”

After fighting for years to make their work “invisible no more,” home care workers won the right to vote whether to bargain collectively with the state during the 2013 legislative session. In August of 2014 they voted decisively to join SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, which will represent all workers in the bargaining unit, but has voluntary membership. They reached a tentative agreement with the state in January. Members ratified the agreement with over 95% support, and now that the legislature and governor have ratified it as well, it is an official contract between home care workers and the state of Minnesota.

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SEIU Healthcare Minnesota unites more than 42,000 healthcare and long-term care workers in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and home care throughout the state of Minnesota. SEIU represents more than 57,000 members across Minnesota and is a powerful voice working to improve the lives of all Minnesotans.

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Home Care workers win union vote by a huge margin, in largest election in state history, seeking better pay and respect for their work and improved care for recipients

St. Paul, MN – Home care workers announced today that workers voted resoundingly to form their union and join the SEIU Healthcare Minnesota. Workers gathered with home care clients and supporters at the Minnesota State Fair Labor Pavilion to announce that the Bureau of Mediation Services tallied the votes earlier in the day and certified the victory, with 60% Yes votes to 40% No votes. The election, the largest of its kind in state history, was triggered when workers turned in thousands of cards on July 8th requesting to form their union. Ballots went out on Friday, August 1st, and the historic election ran for 25 days, ending yesterday, Monday, August 25th.

At the press conference announcing the results, home care workers shared their joy over the results, coming after many years of effort. They discussed their commitment to continue fighting, through their newly-formed union, to finally make real improvements to the home care programs on which so many people with disabilities and elderly Minnesotans depend.

“This union has the power to change the lives of thousands of Minnesota families for the better,” said Yankuba Fadera, a home care worker from Maplewood. “Home care work is real and important work. Both workers and the people we serve deserve better, and winning our union and having a collective voice is a huge step toward getting a contract that makes these improvements a reality. Today, after exercising our democratic right to vote for our union, we are showing how true the statement ‘When We Fight, We Win’ can be for workers in Minnesota.”

“Despite every obstacle put in our way, we stuck to our promise to keep fighting until we were able to exercise our democratic right to let home care workers decide for themselves whether to form a union,” said Sumer Spika, a home care worker from St. Paul. “When given the right to decide for ourselves, home care workers clearly are ready for change and with our union will have a unified voice to fight for better conditions for ourselves and better care for those we serve.”

“Despite the importance of our work caring for Minnesotans in every corner of the state, our work still lacks the respect it deserves,” said Rosemary Van Vickle, a home care worker from Crosby. “Workers deserve things like fair pay better training and paid time off. Because we love our work and the people we serve, we have come together to fight for change. After years of struggle just to get a vote, today we are so excited to have won our union! With our collective voice, we will be strong in our fight for improvements for both workers and the people we serve.”

Advocates with disabilities who receive home care services also spoke today about why this is an important victory for consumers as well as workers.

“When workers voted yes for their union, they were voting Yes for a better life not only for themselves, but also for families like mine,” said Nikki Villavicencio, a home care recipient from Maplewood who attended the press conference with her husband and daughter. “The high turnover in this field, from the low pay and lack of benefits, causes turmoil for families. When we undervalue the workers, we undervalue families like mine. With a voice through a union, we are confident we will finally see the changes needed to make this work invisible no more!”

The workers voted to join SEIU Healthcare Minnesota. Home care workers have been organizing to improve their jobs and Minnesota’s home care programs for years, and won the right to form a union under state law last year.

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SEIU Healthcare Minnesota unites more than 15,000 healthcare and long-term care workers in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and home care throughout the state of Minnesota. SEIU represents more than 30,000 members across Minnesota and is a powerful voice working to improve the lives of all Minnesotans.

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On July 8, home care workers from across the state came together to file a union petition that triggered what will be thelargest union election in the history of our state. Ballots will go out to more than 26,000 home care workers on August 1, and we will have our election results before Labor Day.

We’ve fought for years to get to this point, and there are thousands and thousands of workers from every corner of our state who are part of our movement. Each has a story about why they are joining our campaign to form our union and finally make our work “Invisible No More.”

My story is that I’m a home care worker for a sweet girl who suffers from Rett Syndrome. It is a joy to care for this beautiful child, but it is also challenging work. On a daily basis, she requires tube feeding, dressing, bathing, administration of meds and lots of mobility issues including a split-level entrance at her house.

Despite the important work being done by home care workers like me, we face a reality of low pay, no benefits and lack of training and support. When we win our Union, we will be continuing our fight not only for higher wages and benefits, but things like body-braces for caregivers to help ensure safe and quality care for those we serve. Things like this should not be considered luxuries for the Minnesotans who need care. Our campaign is fighting for a better quality of life for workers and the people we serve. Families in Minnesota deserve better than our current situation.

I provide care for my client through the Consumer Directed Community Supports program. Like most home care workers, I do not get paid mileage and many important parts of my job end up having to be done “off the clock.” Home care workers care immensely for the people we serve, and too often our dedication means we are working many hours longer than we are paid for and sacrificing our health to take care of someone else. With the current situation, turnover is incredibly high and the people who receive services end up suffering. As we face a growing number of Minnesotans needing care, this crisis will only get worse. That is why we need our union.

I will be voting “yes” for a Union to move our industry forward, both for workers and the people we serve. By the end of August, we will have our results and will have won the largest union election in state history. This will be a historic moment, but it will only be the beginning.

When we win our union, we will have achieved a groundbreaking step toward our goals of making our work “Invisible No More.”

– Maggie Doran is a home care worker who lives in St. Paul. She plans to vote “yes” this month to form a union of home care workers statewide, represented by SEIU Healthcare Minnesota.

On Tuesday, July 8th, I was proud to be part of the group who celebrated turning in thousands of cards signed by Personal Care Attendants (PCAs) and other home care workers from across Minnesota expressing our interest in forming a union. The move not only triggered the largest union election in Minnesota’s history, it was the first step in improving our state’s home care system so it works for those who need services and values the work of those of us who provide the services, some 90% of whom are women.
If you talk to the thousands of home care providers who signed cards, you will hear that same number of unique and powerful stories. There is, however, a common thread that helps illuminate why this is such a powerful movement: we love providing care for the seniors and people with disabilities who we serve.

For me, it is all about a gorgeous 6-year-old little girl named Jayla. She was born with a genetic disorder called Opitz Syndrome, has a pulmonary hypertension, and is deaf. She requires breathing treatments, help with toileting, and help doing many other daily activities. I love working with Jayla, but am constantly challenged by the poor working conditions in home care. I want to do everything I can to provide her with quality care but am left to my own resources to stay current on training, technologies, and the latest developments in health care.

On a personal level, the work takes a toll. Two years ago, I gave birth to my beautiful baby boy. Because my work offers no vacation time, I was only able to take one week off after I had a C-section. Further, I have struggled financially to provide for my own family because I care so deeply about taking care of Jayla. Too many PCAs struggle with similar situations. We are paid low wages with no benefits, no sick days, and no vacations. Many live in poverty and others have not had a day off in years. Some have seen their own health fail while they spend all of their energy taking care of someone else. I love the work I do but do not believe that anyone who offers his or her hard work should be relegated to a life of poverty.

We are proud that our work allows those we care for to continue living independently, but in the end, too many great home care workers are forced to leave for other jobs because they can’t survive with the current working conditions. By coming together to form a union, we are fighting not only for ourselves, but also for the people we serve. We are saying that our work must be recognized as real and important work, and that home care workers will no longer tolerate being invisible.

In other states where home care workers have formed unions, they’ve seen increased wages and benefits while protecting the rights and budgets of their clients. Improvements in home care working conditions have reduced worker turnover, a chronic problem in our field that disrupts the quality of services clients receive.

Our state faces a looming workforce crisis in long-term care in the coming years as baby boomers age and the demand for services increases. By paying fair wages and benefits, and providing better training opportunities, we can stabilize this field and recruit new workers to fill the looming gap. What we cannot afford is inaction.

As our effort to form a home care union moved from the State Capitol to one-on-one conversations across the state, our resolve has only grown stronger. After the Supreme Court ruled on Harris v Quinn last week, we said that we would continue to stand together and fight for improved care, and that is exactly what we are doing.When we win our union election later this summer, we will be taking an incredible first step to improve the home care field in Minnesota.

Our work is important. Our work is valuable. Our work deserves dignity, respect, and recognition. When we win our union, we will be one step closer to our goal of making sure home care work is finally “Invisible No More.”

Sumer Spika is a mother of three and a home care worker who lives in St. Paul.

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On Friday, July 11, the Minnesota Bureau of Mediation Services sent an Election Order to all eligible voters for the Home Care Union election. It reads that “the Bureau of Mediation Services, State of Minnesota orders that a mail ballot election be conducted in the appropriate unit of ‘individual providers.’

“Individual providers” are personal care assistants and other home care workers providing direct support services through client-directed Medicaid programs including PCA Choice, Consumer Directed Community Supports (CDCS), and Consumer Support Grants.

BALLOTS WERE MAILED ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 1

They were mailed to the home address supplied by the Minnesota Department of Human Services.

If you do not receive your ballot by Friday, August 8, you MUST CALL the Bureau of Mediation Services at 651-649-5421 to request another ballot be mailed to you. Be sure to verify your Name and Address on file and correct them if needed.

MARK YOUR BALLOT & MAIL IT BACK IN THE ENVELOPE PROVIDED

Use the stamped return envelope that came with your ballot to send it back to BMS. You MUST use this envelope to mail back your ballot. No additional postage will be needed.

All ballots MUST be returned to the Bureau of Mediation Services by 4:30 P.M. on Monday, August 25 in order to be counted.

PROBLEMS WITH YOUR BALLOT?

If you spoil your ballot or mark it incorrectly, do not mail it back. Call the Bureau of Mediation Services at 651-649-5421 and ask them to mail you another ballot.

Vowing to be ‘Invisible No More,’ workers prepare to vote on forming union, seeking better pay and respect for their work and improved home care for recipients

St. Paul, MN – Personal care assistants and direct support professionals gathered today with home care clients and supporters at the Minnesota Bureau of Mediation Services to announce their filing for an election to form a statewide home care workers union. Thousands of home care workers signed cards in support of forming a union so they can win improvements to their jobs and to the care they provide for elderly and disabled Minnesotans.

“My partner, Nicole, needs PCA support 24 hours a day. With the help of several other PCAs, I work every day to see that she gets the care she needs to accomplish her goals,” said Tyler Frank, a home care worker from New Hope. “Because of the high turnover of Nicole’s workers and the extra work their absence leaves for me, I often have to support Nicole at the expense of my own aspirations. We need to recognize the importance of home care work and make it a stable career – that will improve the stability of my life and Nicole’s life.”

“I’ve been a home care worker for the last 15 years, and I decided to go into nursing to help those around me live healthier, longer lives, but because of the current conditions of the work, I’ve suffered myself,” said Shaquonica Johnson, a home care worker from Brooklyn Park. “I had a hysterectomy and went to work the following day because missing work means that my children do not eat. I am here today because for too long, the work I and over 26,000 other Minnesotans do for a living – the work of caring for our neighbors, keeping seniors and people with disabilities in their homes and communities – has been made invisible, and when we win our union, we will finally be invisible no more.”

“We are coming together because we know that in other states where home care workers have formed a union, they have won significant wage increases, access to benefits and training opportunities, and most importantly, a voice in the state decisions that affect them,” said Darleen Henry, a home care worker from Rosemount.

People with disabilities who receive home care services also spoke about why they strongly support home care workers coming together to form a union. “When home care workers are struggling to survive, having to work multiple jobs and still barely able to feed their own family, families like mine see first-hand the hardship that causes, both for their lives and for ours,” said Nikki Villavicencio, a home care recipient from Maplewood. “The high turnover in the field, from the low pay and lack of benefits, causes turmoil for families. The current conditions often make me wonder, why is this field so undervalued? Why is it the workers who support my family are treated as if they are invisible? My family knows that when home care workers win their union, it will help not only them, but us as well.”

The filing will trigger a union election to join SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, which will be administered by the Minnesota Bureau of Mediation Services; with over 26,000 eligible voters, it will be the largest union election in state history. Voting will take place by mail, with ballots expected to go out later this summer. Home care workers have been organizing to improve their jobs and Minnesota’s home care programs for years, and won the right to form a union under state law last year.

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SEIU Healthcare Minnesota unites more than 15,000 healthcare and long-term care workers in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and home care throughout the state of Minnesota. SEIU represents more than 30,000 members across Minnesota and is a powerful voice working to improve the lives of all Minnesotans.

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